Got the sack.

Lopéz said:
Yeah, I have been doing it for the last 5 years. I've also worked in a horrendous call centre. You just need to be in the right centre, in the right role.
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Yup. I've been at my company 4+ years now. Switched departments a couple of times since I really didn't like what I was doing. Honestly thought I hated the place in general until I landed my current role. Don't dismiss a job just cos it's in a call centre. Who you speak to and what the actual work is can vary greatly and do make a big, big difference.
 
jrodga2k5 said:
From what you've said in this thread it would appear you swore after the customer was off the phone, if this was the case then certainly whoever reported it may have either been

a) offended by the swearing or
b) thinking you were swearing at a customer

For the first I would expect a warning and for the second I would understand gross misconduct + sacking at that point. I would be wanting the exact reason and circumstances behind why you've been sacked. If they come back with you swore at a customer then if you didn't by all means fight you're corner.
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The supervisor 100% knew the customer had hung up at the time and like I said they didn't actually mention the swearing part in the meeting where I got dismissed funnily enough, just the "irate" at customer part.

jrodga2k5 said:
You haven't done yourself any good however in simply accepting it at the time and not questioning it further
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I wasn't exactly given a chance to say a word and was in a little shock as well tbh.
 
You need to learn to distance yourself from the customers in a call centre roll. I worked for Freeserve internet many many moons ago, And we all remember how shocking the service was on dial up back then. I was manning a phone which had pretty much a constant flock of customers, 100+ in the queue. And they were ALWAYS angry, ALWAYS uncooperative, and ALWAYS looking to blame someone, especially after their long wait. I never once got angry, never once felt any sort of emotion, I simply treat what i was doing as a job, and if a customer began swearing or being nasty, I calmly reminded the customer i was there to help, and any bad language would result in him being cut off, I also reminded them that the queue time to get through to someone else is generally rather long.
 
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MrMoonX said:
under 12 months in the job you dont have a leg to stand on, they can do what they like as you have no employment rights, all the posters going on about unfair dismissal are having a laugh if they think you could bring this to a tribunal

please dont take the advice of the last 2 posters going on about statutory dismissal process it doesn't apply until you have worked there for 12 months
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Not truly right as soon as probation is over you get some very basic rights, not full protected emplyment stauts but that your contract would be enforced (eg notice / holiday etc)

"Statutory protection from Unfair Dismissal only applies after a person has been continuously employed for 12 months. An employee with less than 12 months may be dismissed by giving reasonable notice (at least the statutory minimum of one week.). He or she must also be given pay for any holiday that has accrued but which has not been taken. Problems may arise if notice is given near the end of the 12 month period and advice should be taken."

But reading back I missed that he said it was for being irate to a customer, its just a fob off obviously. Face didnt fit so accept it, still worth writing in and getting their response no matter what they have a duty to be fair and giving written confirmation is at least that.

Just make sure you get what your due on holiday pat etc but most companies will.
 
Also if they are doing gross misconduct then thats their reason, they are using that to breach contract and hence need to be measured against it.
If its gross misconduct and thats their story they need to prove it, otherwise they have not complied with the minimum under law for the notice and have breached the limitied employment rights he does have.

They are trying to have their cake and eat it.
 
MrMoonX said:
under 12 months in the job you dont have a leg to stand on, they can do what they like as you have no employment rights, all the posters going on about unfair dismissal are having a laugh if they think you could bring this to a tribunal

please dont take the advice of the last 2 posters going on about statutory dismissal process it doesn't apply until you have worked there for 12 months
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total rubbish

he does have rights. its the biggest miss conception going

if he had no rights they would have dismissed him and not had to make up an excuse , them getting him on a gross misconduct charge is there way of getting round the rights that hes got but they need to prove it which they havent.
 
Morgoth said:
Working in a call centre destroyed my soul.
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Depends on the "call centre" in question, the one myself and a few of the other guys here worked at gained valuable knowledge and experience.


Knowledge and experience to never work at a helpdesk ever again :p

But seriously, valuable knowledge was learnt there.
 
"andy" said:
total rubbish

he does have rights. its the biggest miss conception going

if he had no rights they would have dismissed him and not had to make up an excuse , them getting him on a gross misconduct charge is there way of getting round the rights that hes got but they need to prove it which they havent.
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No your wrong
He cannot claim unfair dismissal at an employment tribunal until he has been employed for 12 months unless his dismissal is because of any of the following automatically unfair factors:

pregnancy: including all reasons relating to maternity
family reasons: including parental leave, paternity leave (birth and adoption), adoption leave or time off for dependants
representation: including acting as an employee representative and trade union membership grounds and union recognition
part-time and fixed-term employees
discrimination: including protection against discrimination on the grounds of age, sex, race, disability, sexual orientation and religion or belief
pay and working hours: including the Working Time Regulations, annual leave and the National Minimum Wage

(Source: ACAS)
 
Ouch, I can see why you got the sack, if that call was ever requested by the customer under the freedom of information act you'd have been stuffed if the recording system they use was still live.

I work in a call centre also, and sometimes when your off call your recording software is still going, sometimes you forget, and I've been guilty of it making some kind of grunt or groan after a difficult call.

You can get away with it if its busy and people are in the middle of a call, but if there aren't many of you talking and you've said it loudly enough for a colleague to hear it, you might as well ask for your P45 there and then and go with your dignity intact.

I've developed a coping mechanism with awkward callers these days, I do one of two th ings, I just swtich off or I'll start throwing my pen over my desk, I had a caller this afternoon before I left that was a bit uneducated and it took me three or four attempts to get her to listen to what I'd said.
 
i have nothing to add on the matter, but sounds like you work for the same company i do, although i work in the one of the actual stores themselves. Based in Hamilton or Didsbury??
 
Behemoth said:
Ouch, I can see why you got the sack, if that call was ever requested by the customer under the freedom of information act you'd have been stuffed if the recording system they use was still live.
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Data Protection Act not Freedom of Information Act (the latter only applies to companies which are wholly owned by public authorities, (wholly owned by the Crown, wholly owned by a single public authority or wholly owned subsidiaries of publicly owned companies)). src ICO website.
 
MrMoonX said:
No your wrong
He cannot claim unfair dismissal at an employment tribunal until he has been employed for 12 months unless his dismissal is because of any of the following automatically unfair factors:

pregnancy: including all reasons relating to maternity
family reasons: including parental leave, paternity leave (birth and adoption), adoption leave or time off for dependants
representation: including acting as an employee representative and trade union membership grounds and union recognition
part-time and fixed-term employees
discrimination: including protection against discrimination on the grounds of age, sex, race, disability, sexual orientation and religion or belief
pay and working hours: including the Working Time Regulations, annual leave and the National Minimum Wage

(Source: ACAS)
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I see what your saying but I disagree with your conclusion. There wouldbe zero point in putting the provision of limited rights like 1 weeks pay for less than 12 months servive if simply stating gross misconduct could mean they get out of it.
They are mixing and matching two different parts of contract to do this. If its gross misconduct its dealt with under the companies detailed proceedures, if its we just want to let yo go they can, but they have to give a weeks notice due to law.

They are taking the dismissal without pay from one part and the no specific reason needed from another. Its not specifically about being unfairly dismissed since technically he cant be, but he can be dismissed and they can be in breach of his signed contract no matter if hes worked there 12 months.

I have never seen any contract that says the companies grievance and disciplinary proceedures are time limited, ie you need to work there 12 months before they apply.
 
I would also rather be homeless than work in a soul destroying call centre cesspool being talked to like a piece of crap. Coming from the same place soneafifer worked ;)

McDonalds would most likely be more rewarding.
 
Seems a bit harsh to me. I wouldn't expect swearing (not at a customer) to count as gross misconduct, just misconduct and thus some sort of official warning.

Then again maybe in a call centre environment these things are taken a lot more seriously even if there is no intent to offend anyone.
 
robskinner said:
I see what your saying but I disagree with your conclusion. There wouldbe zero point in putting the provision of limited rights like 1 weeks pay for less than 12 months servive if simply stating gross misconduct could mean they get out of it.
They are mixing and matching two different parts of contract to do this. If its gross misconduct its dealt with under the companies detailed proceedures, if its we just want to let yo go they can, but they have to give a weeks notice due to law.

They are taking the dismissal without pay from one part and the no specific reason needed from another. Its not specifically about being unfairly dismissed since technically he cant be, but he can be dismissed and they can be in breach of his signed contract no matter if hes worked there 12 months.

I have never seen any contract that says the companies grievance and disciplinary proceedures are time limited, ie you need to work there 12 months before they apply.
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The contract and company procedures are irrelevant as he has no one to complain to as he cannot take his dismissal to an employment tribunal, this is why companies can almost do what they like with you before 12 months in the job, he should be paid any remaining holiday/TOIL but thats it.
 
MrMoonX said:
The contract and company procedures are irrelevant as he has no one to complain to as he cannot take his dismissal to an employment tribunal, this is why companies can almost do what they like with you before 12 months in the job, he should be paid any remaining holiday/TOIL but thats it.
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Wrong.

You can take a claim to the court for breach of contract it doesnt matter how long you have worked somewhere if someone does not follow the terms in a signed contract they are in breach and you can seek recompense from a court. The 12 months is completely irrelevant in this case.

A contract is a contract if you are using a reason in that contract to get out of it you need to follow the whole of that area of the contract.
If the contract says under 12 months there are no disciplinary proceedures then I agree but if it doesnt they apply and they set out the process and rules for how it will apply.

The key is did they let him go for less than 12 months, if so they owe him a weeks money, the minimum notice period. Did they let him go for gross misconduct, if so they need to follow their own prescribed proceedures as thats what they are CONTRACTUALLY obliged to do.
 
MrMoonX said:
he should be paid any remaining holiday/TOIL but thats it.
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Sorry missed my response to the TOIL bit.
Assuming you recognise the weeks notice thats the issue as they haven't paid that.

They have said gross misconduct so no money but have failed to follow (or almost definately have) their own gross misconduct proceedures.

I atotally agree if they let him go on the under 12 months rules they can simply do that but the minimum statuatory provision for him is one weeks money in this case which they haven't paid.
 
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